Client: Totnes Community Development Society
Atmos is a community-led redevelopment project aimed at regenerating the 3.5ha derelict industrial Dairy Crest site in Totnes. The site lies adjacent to Totnes railway station and the River Dart and has lain derelict since 2007. It is crossed by the historic Mill Leat that served various mills located within the town of Totnes. The site also includes the locally iconic Grade 2 listed Brunel Building.
The redevelopment includes housing and enterprise space. It is being developed under a Community Right to Build Order, granted by South Hams District Council in Spring 2017.
JGP is part of the design team working, and since 2015 has provided various civil and geotechnical support:
Flood Risk Assessment
Approximately two thirds of the site is designated as at risk of flooding, the majority of which is in a functional flood plain. JGP devised a scheme in consultation with the EA to reduce flood risk on site to acceptable levels. The scheme involved various mitigation measures, including:
- raising site levels in the development area by 1.5m; and
- lowering levels on another part of the site to compensate for the loss of flood plain.
Transport Assessment / Statement
This accounted for notable traffic access issues (an awkward junction at the access point that connects to one of the busiest roads in the region) and the proximity of the railway station. Most importantly the transport assessment uses sustainable modes of transport to minimise use of cars on site. Residents and businesses owners will need to enter into a contract with TCDS to use the Society’s car share club for all their transport needs. The assessment is being seen as best practice following models being used in Holland, Germany and parts of the US.
Geotechnical Ground Investigation
The GI included trial pits, boreholes (rotary & windowless sampling), hand-held DCPs, infiltration tests and geotechnical testing to establish ground conditions and depth to suitable bearing strata to inform the foundation rationale for the new access bridge across the Mill Leat, the new build residential apartments and dwellings, commercial units and the refurbishment and extension of the Grade II Listed Brunel Building. The GI also provided geotechnical advice for drainage design, roads, retaining structures, the re-use of site materials, the raising of site levels in the North Site (as a flood risk protection measure) and the excavation of materials towards the northern site boundary (to create a wetland / flood alleviation area).
